A weekend full of golf and poker benefiting St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital® will be held in late May in Las Vegas, as poker players from around the world begin to gather in Las Vegas for the city’s traditional summer run of major poker events. The “St. Jude Against All Odds” fundraiser will be held May 20 and 21, with Charity Series of Poker (CSOP) president and founder Matt Stout and celebrity poker pro Daniel Negreanu co-chairing the event.
CSOP joins Golf Venture, Johnson Brothers of Nevada and SKC Group as event sponsors. Negreanu founded St. Jude Against All Odds in 2014. To date, the annual event has raised nearly $2 million for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
This year’s benefit adds golf for the first time to what had previously been a poker-only fundraiser. Friday, May 20, is the day devoted to golf activities, with the traditional poker event to be held on Saturday, May 21.
“To say we're excited to return to live in-person events like St. Jude Against All Odds would be a vast understatement,” said Stout. “We’re thankful for our sponsors and pleased to expand our event with the addition of the golf tournament as yet another way we can have fun with a purpose for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.”
Siena Golf Club hosts links event
The golf portion of the 2022 St. Jude Against All Odds festivities takes place at the SIena Golf Club near Las Vegas’s western edge. The golf event is limited to 144 participants and includes a continental breakfast, Bloody Mary Bar, and lunch.
The golf gets underway at 7:00 am. Proper golfing attire is required. Tee times are available throughout the morning and the day wraps with an awards presentation once all golfers have completed their rounds.
Saturday poker event at Red Rock casino
The following day sees the focus of the St. Jude’s benefit shift from the links to the poker tables at nearby Red Rock Casino Resort and Spa. A turbo-style poker tourney with a first prize of a seat into the 2022 World Series of Poker Main Event leads the list of prizes during an afternoon and evening filled with poker-related entertainment.
“Don’t miss out on an evening of St. Jude mission moments, a delectable dining experience, premium open bar, a first-class live auction, live entertainment and a competitive night of poker with your favorite poker players, brought to you by the Charity Series of Poker,” St. Jude’s event page declares. The open bar gets the gathering warmed up, beginning at 4:00 pm.
The poker tourney itself begins at approximately 8:00 pm, and there’s much more available in prizes and giveaways than just the WSOP Main Event seat. Second prize is a deluxe Las Vegas Golden Knights and poker package assembled by Negreanu. The package includes a trip for two (2) to “Go Center Ice with Daniel Negreanu” at a Vegas Golden Knights game, plus one reserved seat in a special celebrity Charity Series of Poker charity $1/3 no-limit game that will also feature Negreanu.
The top ten finishers in the poker tournament will receive prizes, with spots three through ten winning prize bags including a collection of prizes worth an estimated $200 to $300. And there is a bounty element to the tourney as well. According to a St. Jude FAQ, at least ten and up to twenty featured guests will be chosen and advertised as “bounty” players. The player who claims these players will be awarded a similar prize bag, also consisting of a variety of items valued at approximately $200-300.
Overall, the golf-and-poker 2022 St. Jude Against All Odds should end up raising several hundred thousand dollars for St. Jude’s ongoing research and care for children afflicted with cancer.
“St. Jude has always held a special place in my heart, but their mission took on an even more special meaning to me in 2020,” Stout told poker.org. “I watched in horror as my 23-year-old nephew lost his two-year-old son to cancer, and my resolve to help St. Jude ensure that no child dies in the dawn of life increased ten-fold. Please help us support this amazing organization that freely shares their research with the medical community so that breakthroughs made at St. Jude can be used to help treat kids around the world.”
Weekend packages for St. Jude Against All Odds start at $300. Visit stjude.org/lvpoker to register to attend and learn more about sponsorships and other ways to get involved.
Featured image source: stjude.org
